DHA lowers the price of COVID-19 detection test to invite more testings.
The Dubai Health Authorities(DHA) has decided to slash the prices of COVID-19 detection tests to Dh150 from Dh250. All the DHA testing centres will start testing with the lowered price starting today.
The new reduced rates were announced to all the testing centres as DHA directed circulars to all its testing centres. This is being done with the aim to make the reverse transcript-polymerase chain reaction also known as RT-PCR, more affordable for people so that a larger number of people consider covid testing.
The United Arab Emirates is among the countries with the most number of coronavirus testing per day and even after that, the country is making sure to take necessary precautions and stress on Covid-19 tests to keep the public safe.
In the private hospitals, the cost for conducting the tests will remain unchanged but as far as the government hospitals are concerned in Dubai, the test will be conducted at reduced rates. A phone line number has also been dedicated to the residents who can call 800342 in order to make appointments for the test. The results for the tests typically take somewhere from 24 to 48 hours.
The UAE has been concerned with testing from the beginning of the pandemic and hence in its efforts to test as many people as possible, the government has managed to test more than 7.5 million through RT-PCR. The government is making such efforts in order to detect the virus faster and to isolate these patients who tested positive and also warn people who may have come in proximity of the virus carriers and ask them to quarantine themselves. The doctors also approved of this method saying that this will help curbing the pace of the community transmission of the virus.
The director of a private pathological laboratory explained why the RT-PCR tests priced high. He said that the test is a type of molecular testing module which enabled us to amplify and detect a specific gene component. In order to avoid any confusion or false alarms in the testing process, three or four genes are tested. He further said, “the analyser is expensive.”
“Moreover, a special negative pressure technique is used and Hepa filter units are required to minimise chances of contamination. Therefore, the tests are priced high.”
However, he said, the private hospitals might also reduce the price and bring it down to the point that they can cover the minimal cost of equipment and testing.
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